Thanksgiving is a uniquely American holiday. It is no longer (and perhaps
never was) a celebration affiliated with any particular religion or faith,
although some in America celebrate with religious ceremonies. On a social
level, it is celebrated by Americans of a broad variety of religious backgrounds.
This article discusses the halachic issues related to the different forms
of celebrating (1) Thanksgiving that one witnesses
in America currently. In particular, this article will focus on whether the
holiday of Thanksgiving is essentially a religious holiday, a secular holiday,
or an ambiguous one. (2)

Before any halachic analysis can be done, it is necessary to place the observance
of the holiday of Thanksgiving in America in the proper historical context.
The first Thanksgiving day celebration was held in response to the survival
by the pilgrims of the particularly harsh winter of 1622/3. Not only did
the colonists themselves celebrate, but food was sufficiently plenty that
even the Indians with whom the colonists were at peace were invited. This
celebration took place on July 30, 1623 (in the middle of the summer). Similar
such celebrations occurred throughout the New England area throughout the
1600's. (4) However, they were only local
(rather than national or even regional) celebrations of Thanksgiving -- and
only to mark the end of a particularly difficult winter -- until 1789.
(5)

In 1789, Congressman Elias Boudinot of New Jersey proposed in Congress a
resolution urging President Washington to:

Recommend to the people of the United States a
day of public Thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with
grateful hearts the many and signal favors of the Almighty God, especially
by affording them an opportunity to establish a Constitution of government
for their safety and happiness. (6)

After quite a debate, President Washington issued the first National Thanksgiving
Proclamation, setting November 26, 1789 as Thanksgiving and a national holiday.
Washington stated in his proclamation:

Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday,
the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States
to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author
of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all
unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care
and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a
nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions
of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great
degree of tranquillity, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for
the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish
constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly
the national one now lately instituted; for the civil and religious liberty
with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing
useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which
He has been pleased to confer upon us. (7)

Notwithstanding the religious eloquence of Washington's
words (and even perhaps because of their overtly religious theme
(8)) Thanksgiving did not become a national
holiday. From 1790 to 1863 there were no national celebrations of Thanksgiving.
Indeed, while proclamations of thanks were issued by some presidents, all
of the presidents for more than the next seventy years chose to ignore the
day as a national holiday of thanksgiving.
(9)

It was not until 1846, when the unity of the country was again in controversy
because of the Missouri Compromise and the problems of slavery, that the
celebration of Thanksgiving as a national holiday returned to the national
agenda. From 1846 to 1863, Ms. Sara Joseph Hale, the editor of Godey's
Lady Book(10) embarked on a campaign
to turn Thanksgiving into a national holiday during which workers would not
be required to go to work. Her campaign culminated in President Lincoln's
Thanksgiving proclamation of 1863 -- the first such proclamation of a national
Thanksgiving holiday since 1789. Since 1863, Thanksgiving has been celebrated
as a national holiday and a day of rest at the end of November, either the
fourth or fifth Thursday of the month.
(11)

One might ask whether Jewish law should simply defer to the American law
determination here that Thanksgiving is a "secular" and not a religious holiday.
Once this conclusion is reached, the claim is made, little controversy remains.
The simple answer is that American law adopts a definition of "secular" that
clearly is "religious" in the eyes of Jewish law. For example, in Cammack
v. Waihee,(12) a court determined that
the holiday called "Good Friday" was a "secular" holiday. So too, the Supreme
Court has ruled that both Christmas and Channukah are "secular" holidays
and have "secular" displays that lack a religious theme.
(13) Certainly Jewish law views neither of
them as "secular" and would not accept American law's definition of "secular"
as binding on adherents of halacha. (14)

Having reviewed the history of Thanksgiving, it is now necessary to turn
to the question of halachic issues involved in its "celebration". The first,
and most significant issue, is whether it is permissible to eat a Thanksgiving
meal, with the classical foods that American tradition indicates one should
eat at this meal: turkey (15) and cranberry
sauce. Among the authorities of the previous generation, three different
positions have been taken on this topic, and these three positions have each
been accepted by various halachic authorities of the current generation.

However, before these three positions can be understood, a certain background
into the nature of the prohibition to imitate Gentile customs must be understood.
(16) Tosafot understands that two distinctly
different types of customs are forbidden by the prohibition of imitating
Gentile customs found in Leviticus 18:3. The first is idolatrous customs
and the second is foolish customs found in the Gentile community, even if
their origins are not idolatrous. (17) Rabbenu
Nissim and Maharik disagree and rule that only customs that have a basis
in idolatrous practices are prohibited. Apparently foolish -- but secular
-- customs are permissible so long as they have a reasonable explanation
(and are not immodest). (18) Normative halacha
follows the ruling of the Ran and Maharik. As noted by Rama:

Those practices done as a [Gentile] custom or law
with no reason one suspects that it in an idolatrous practice or that there
is a taint of idolatrous origins; however, those customs which are practiced
for a reason, such as the physician who wears a special garment to identify
him as a doctor, can be done; the same is true for any custom done out of
honor or any other reason is permissible.
(19)

As will be seen later, there are authorities who favor being strict for the
opinion of the Gra, who rules that the only time "secular" customs are
permissible is when they have a Jewish origin.
(20) According to this approach, secular
customs created by Gentiles are prohibited even when their origins are not
religious.

Additionally -- and independent of the halachic obligation to avoid Gentile
religious customs -- Jewish law forbids a Jew from actually celebrating
idolatrous religious events himself. Thus, a Jew may not attend an idolatrous
"Indian" (21) office party or directly facilitate
its observance. (22) So too, a Jew may not
attend a birthday party for an idol worshipper if the birthday party includes
worship of idols. (23)

Rabbi Moshe Feinstein has four published responsa on the issues related to
celebrating Thanksgiving, all of which conclude that Thanksgiving is not
a religious holiday, but a secular one. The first responsum, written in
1953/5723, discusses the deliberate scheduling of weddings and the like on
religious holidays of other faiths. Rabbi Feinstein states:

On the question of celebrating any event on a holiday
of Gentiles, if the holiday is based on religious beliefs [by the Gentiles],
such celebrations are prohibited if deliberately scheduled on that day; even
without intent, it is prohibited because of marit ayin(24) . . . The first day of year for them
[January 1](25) and Thanksgiving is not
prohibited according to law, but pious people [balai nephesh] should
be strict. (26)

Rabbi Feinstein reinforces his understanding that Thanksgiving is not a religious
holiday in a responsum published in 1980/5741. He states:

On the issue of joining with those who think that
Thanksgiving is like a holiday to eat a meal: since it is clear that according
to their religious law books this day is not mentioned as a religious holiday
and that one is not obligated in a meal [according to Gentile religious law]
and since this is a day of remembrance to citizens of this country, when
they came to reside here either now or earlier, halacha sees no prohibition
in celebrating with a meal or with the eating of turkey. One sees similar
to this in Kiddushin 66 that Yanai the king made a party after the conquest
of kochlet in the desert and they ate vegetables as a remembrance.

Nonetheless it is prohibited to establish this
as an obligation and religious commandment [mitzvah], and it remains
a voluntary celebration now; in this manner -- without the establishment
of obligation or religious commandment -- one can celebrate the next year
too with a meal. But, I think, nonetheless it is prohibited to establish
a fixed day in the year for the celebration and it is only in the first year
of the event, like when Yanai conquered, and then they had a party, and not
for permanence. There is also a problem of adding commandments . . .
(27) Even though one can question the source,
it is still a real prohibition. (28)

Thus, Rabbi Feinstein appears to rule that Thanksgiving is not a religious
holiday, and there is no problem of "Gentile holidays" while observing it.
Nonetheless he prohibits its ongoing celebration as an obligation on a particular
day because he feels that it is a prohibited addition to the Jewish calendar
or creates a problem of adding commandments. While Rabbi Feinstein's objections
to adding observances will be discussed later on, it is clear that he sees
no problem in Thanksgiving's celebration as a Gentile holiday, and he appears
to see no problem with eating a turkey meal on that day as a matter of choice,
and not obligation. (29)

As proof to the fact that Rabbi Feinstein rules eating turkey permissible,
one sees that elsewhere in the same teshuva Rabbi Feinstein states:

Thus, it is obvious in my opinion, that even in
a case where something would be considered a prohibited Gentile custom, if
many people do it for reasons unrelated to their religion or law, but rather
because it is pleasurable to them, there is no prohibition of imitating Gentile
custom. So too, it is obvious that if Gentiles were to make a religious law
to eat a particular item that is good to eat, halacha would not prohibit
eating that item. So too, any item of pleasure in the world cannot be prohibited
merely because Gentiles do so out of religious observance.
(30)

Rabbi Feinstein then applies this principle to going bare-headed, and rules
that even if some Gentiles do so out of religious fervor, since many people
do so out of concerns for comfort, this is not considered a religious custom.

Rabbi Feinstein, in a recently published teshuva also written in
1980/5741, seems to state that in fact there is a prohibition to celebrate
Thanksgiving, even though he acknowledges that Thanksgiving has no religious
content. In this teshuva he views such celebratory activity on Thanksgiving
as irrational, and thus prohibited as a form of imitating secular society.
However, a close examination of that letter reveals that the only time Rabbi
Feinstein would consider that conduct prohibited is if it was done with
celebratory rituals associated with actually celebrating Thanksgiving, (perhaps
reciting a text or singing a song), and not merely eating a meal.
(31) Indeed, Rabbi Feinstein, in his fourth
teshuva on this topic, clearly recognizes that even this is a stricture,
as it is predicated on the approach which argues that secular rituals that
have no religious origins are prohibited by the prohibition of imitating
Gentiles (see the Introduction to this Part), which he states is not the
normative halacha, but a mere stricture. In this teshuva, he states that
the responsa block quoted above is to be considered the normative one.
(32)

Rabbi Ephraim Greenblatt also permits the celebration of Thanksgiving by
the eating of turkey. (33) He states that
he has a responsum set to be published
(34) that rules that it is permissible to
eat turkey on Thanksgiving, because Thanksgiving is "only a day of thanks,
and not, heaven forbid, for idol celebration." Rabbi Greenblatt adds that
he posed this question more than thirty years ago to Rabbi Eliezer Silver
and that Rabbi Silver also ruled that it was permissible to eat turkey on
Thanksgiving. (35)

Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik also agreed that Thanksgiving was not a Gentile
holiday, and ruled that it was permissible to eat turkey on Thanksgiving.
Rabbi Hershel Schachter, in his intellectual biography of Rabbi Soloveitchik,
Nefesh HaRav, writes:

It was the opinion of Rabbi Soloveitchik that it
was permissible to eat turkey at the end of November, on the day of Thanksgiving.
We understood that, in his opinion, there was no question that turkey did
not lack a tradition of kashrut (36) and
that eating it on Thanksgiving was not a problem of imitating gentile customs.
We also heard that this was the opinion of his father, Rabbi Moshe Soloveitchik.

Others have also recounted that Rabbi Soloveitchik ruled this way, and that
he found it difficult to comprehend how one could consider Thanksgiving a
Gentile holiday or that it was prohibited to celebrate it.
(37) Indeed, there were instances when Rabbi
Soloveitchik implied to his students that he and his family celebrated
Thanksgiving, although shiur was always held on Thanksgiving.
(38)

A similar view is taken by Rabbi Yehuda Herzl Henkin, who states that it
is clear that halacha does not consider Thanksgiving to be a religious holiday,
and that even if one lived in a society where there are some religious
denominations that celebrate Thanksgiving "religiously" that would not be
sufficient to make it a religious holiday, as it is clear that many secular
people celebrate it. (39) Rabbi Henkin suggests
that it would be a good thing occasionally to skip the Thanksgiving meal,
as a way of indicating that this event is not a religious "obligation," but
is merely permissive, and thus accommodate the stricture of Rabbi Feinstein.
Rabbi Henkin concludes:

Where is there found any prohibition to rejoice
on the king's birthday and similar occasions? Common practice proves the
opposite. Rather there are two distinctly different rules. On a Gentile religious
holiday, it is prohibited to do business [to assist the Gentiles] since they
use that which we provide for worship. For this rule, it makes no difference
what is the purpose of the holiday, even the coronation or birthday of the
king is included. Such is not the case regarding rejoicing and celebrating
alone; in this case one must examine the holiday to determine if its origins
are primarily idolatrous or not. . . .However, if the reason for the celebration
is primarily secular it is permissible to celebrate, such as the coronation
of the king, the Fourth of July in America or Thanksgiving. For this it makes
no difference that some Gentiles celebrate these holidays in churches.
(40)

This, however, comes with one significant caveat, that Rabbi Henkin notes.
As stated in Shulchan Aruch, it is clearly prohibited to celebrate even a
completely secular holiday (such as the coronation of a king) with those
Gentiles who are celebrating that "secular" day with religious observances.
(41) However, one may join with a Gentile
if one is certain that this particular Gentile does not worship in a manner
or faith prohibited to Gentiles according to Jewish law.
(42) Thus, even those authorities who would
permit marking Thanksgiving with a meal would not permit doing so with Gentiles
who are religiously celebrating the day. (The same is true for a birthday
party, wedding or funeral.)

An exactly opposite approach to the rulings of Rabbis Feinstein and Soloveitchik
appears to have been taken by Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner.
(43) Rabbi Hutner argues that it is obvious
and apparent that -- whatever the merit of celebrating Thanksgiving the first
time in the 1600's -- the establishment of an annual holiday that is based
on the Christian calendar is, at the very least, closely associated with
idol worship and thus prohibited. Rabbi Hutner argues that such a celebration
becomes a "holiday" through the creation of an annual observance and celebrating
Gentile holidays is obviously wrong. Rabbi Hutner concludes:

In truth, one must distance oneself from these
types of customs and even from those events that are similar to these types
of customs . . . The truth is simple and obvious.
(44)

An analogous approach, albeit less certain of a prohibition, is adopted by
Rabbi Menashe Klein who also rules that halacha prohibits the celebration
of Thanksgiving. (45) Rabbi Klein notes that
halacha divides Gentile rituals into two distinctly different categories.
The first category is those things that Gentiles do out of silliness and
irrationality. The second are those that are done for religious purposes
or for purposes of immodesty. Rabbi Klein then cites the Gra, who rules that
Gentile customs and law that have no Jewish basis should be avoided because
they might have an origin in the idolatrous customs of the past.
(46) Rabbi Klein then states:

Thus, those who eat fowl as a commemoration for
the fact, as I heard it, that they did not have what to eat, and they found
this bird, and they were very happy and rejoiced over having found this bird,
this appears not to be a Gentile custom. Nonetheless, one must examine this
to determine if it is, as it states in Yoreh Deah 147:6, a case of one who
makes a private holiday, and worships many gods, on the day that he was born
or was first shaved or any similar case. It is possible that Thanksgiving
is such a case; even though they claim that they are worshipping God, and
not idols, it is possible that there is a mixture here and thus it is possible
that this is a Gentile ritual. Thus the Spirit of the Sages does not approve
of one who celebrates, and it is possible that there is a biblical violation.
(47)

A similar view is expressed by Rabbi David Cohen (of Gvul Yavetz),
who writes:

The celebrating of Thanksgiving is something that
has been disputed by many rabbis -- some prohibited and maintain that it
is a derivative prohibition of idol worship and there are others who completely
permit [its celebration]. In my opinion, to eat turkey for the sake of a
holiday is prohibited by the rule of Tosafot, Avodah Zara 11a, since this
is an irrational rule of theirs and following it is improper. Nonetheless,
there is no prohibition for a family to get together on a day when people
do not go to work and to eat together; if it is their wish to eat turkey
not for the sake of thanks but because they like turkey, that is not prohibited,
but the spirit of the Sages does not approve of such conduct, as they are
functioning as if they follow the practice of Gentiles.
(49)

In sum, three premier authorities of the previous generation have taken three
conflicting views. Rabbi Hutner perceived Thanksgiving as a Gentile holiday,
and thus prohibited any involvement in the holiday. Rabbi Soloveitchik permitted
the celebration of Thanksgiving and permitted eating turkey on that day.
He ruled that Thanksgiving was not a religious holiday, and saw no problem
with its celebration. Rabbi Feinstein adopted a middle ground. He maintained
that Thanksgiving was not a religious holiday; but nonetheless thought that
there were problems associated with "celebrating" any secular holiday. Thus,
while he appears to have permitted eating turkey on that day, he would discourage
any annual "celebration" (50) that would
be festival-like.

The issue of adding a day of celebration to the Jewish calendar is referred
to by both Rabbis Feinstein and Hutner and deserves elaboration. Rabbi Hutner
asserts that the dating of such a holiday through the Christian calendar
is clear evidence that such a holiday is "Gentile" in nature and thus prohibited.
(51) Rabbi Feinstein understands this problem
differently. Rabbi Feinstein maintains that there are specific halachic problems
associated with adding holidays to the Jewish calendar, independent of whether
they are "secular", "Jewish," or "gentile." Indeed, these types of objections
have been raised to the modern observances of Yom Hasho'a, Yom
Ha'atzmaut, and Yom Yerushalayim, and have nothing necessarily
to do with the presence of a Gentile origin. There is an extensive literature
on this issue with many different opinions advanced.

Some authorities maintain, as Rabbi Feinstein appears to do, that it is
absolutely prohibited to add holidays to the calendar as an annual observance.
(52) These authorities rule that while
individuals can annually celebrate such events on the day that they happen,
these celebrations never get incorporated in the general Jewish calendar,
and it is prohibited to do so. Others maintain that such events can only
be incorporated in the calendar after they receive unanimous (perhaps
multi-generational) rabbinic sanction.
(53) Yet others rule that every Jewish society
can incorporate these days of thanksgiving (or mourning) to reflect significant
manifestations of God's will toward the community.
(54) Yet others limit this to rituals that
require no specialized blessings, and are technically permitted all year
round. (55) No consensus has developed on
this issue and each community follows its own custom on this issue.
(56)

However, in this author's opinion, a strong case can be made that this dispute
is not really applicable to the way Thanksgiving is, in fact, celebrated
in America, and that even those who flatly prohibit any additions to the
Jewish calendar are not referring to the festivities of American Independence
Day, Thanksgiving or Labor Day. Rather, these authorities are referring to
the highly ritualized religious expressions of thanks to God that accompany
days of religious observance, such as the services on Yom Ha-atzma'ut
or the like. Thanksgiving, like Independence Day and Labor Day, lacks any
ritualized prayer component, formal activities of any kind, obligatory liturgy
or a festival (mo'ed) attitude.
(57) Even the holiday meal that many eat
is not obligatory under American law.
(58) Given the way that the completely secular
(59) holidays are celebrated in this era
in America, one would not think that any of them -- including Thanksgiving
-- is an additional "festival" in the Jewish calendar.
(60) Under this approach, Rabbi Feinstein's
caveat would only limit the ritualized celebration of Thanksgiving.
(61) Indeed, it is precisely this type of
limitation on "celebration" that Rabbi Feinstein seems to be calling for,
and which Rabbi Henkin endorses. (62)

One other issue is worth noting. All three of these authorities appear to
agree that the celebration of a one-time day of thanksgiving to mark the
first time an event worthy of thanks occurs, is not problematic.
(63) Thus, for example, President Bush declared
a day of thanksgiving in 1991 in response to the victory in the Persian Gulf
war (64) and it would not be problematic
according to any of these opinions to mark that one-time event with some
form of a celebration. Indeed, as noted by Rabbi Feinstein, there is some
talmudic precedent for that form of thanksgiving.
(65)

Three basic approaches are taken by contemporary decisors (poskim)
on the question of celebrating Thanksgiving. Some rule that Thanksgiving
is not a Gentile holiday, but yet limit "celebration." They would, apparently,
permit eating a turkey meal. Others prohibit any form of involvement in
Thanksgiving, as they rule it a Gentile holiday. Yet others view the day
no different from Independence Day and allow any celebration appropriate
for a secular observance.

Indeed, there remains a basic dispute that permeates this review and divide
contemporary American halachic authorities of the last seventy five years.
The relevant issue is whether it is appropriate to distinguish between "secular
society", "Gentile society" and "idol-worshiping society" in modern American
culture. The validity of this distinction -- which was not generally made
by the decisors of Eastern Europe two hundred years ago for the society of
that time and place -- is extremely relevant to a broad variety of halachic
issues related to contemporary American society.

Like many areas of Jewish law where there is a diversity of legitimate
approaches, individuals should follow the practices of their community, family
or rabbi, all-the-while respecting and accepting as halachicly permissible
other community's practices. It is for the ability to respect and accept
as legitimate the conduct of fellow observant Jews -- sanctioned by rabbinic
authority -- that true thanksgiving to the Almighty is needed.

This article has so far avoided any discussion of normative halacha. Such
cannot, however, be avoided, at least in a conclusion. It is my opinion that
this article clearly establishes that: (1) Thanksgiving is a secular holiday
with secular origins; (2) while some people celebrate Thanksgiving with religious
rituals, the vast majority of Americans do not; (3) halacha permits one to
celebrate secular holidays, so long as one avoids doing so with people who
celebrate them through religious worship and (4) so long as one avoids giving
the celebration of Thanksgiving the appearance of a religious rite (either
by occasionally missing a year or in some other manner making it clear that
this is not a religious duty) the technical problems raised by Rabbi Feinstein
and others are inapplicable.

Thus, halacha law permits one to have a private Thanksgiving celebration
with one's Jewish or secular friends and family. For reasons related to
citizenship and the gratitude we feel towards the United States government,
I would even suggest that such conduct is wise and proper.

It has been recounted that some marking of Thanksgiving day was the practice
of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, thus adding force to our custom of noting
the day in some manner.

Elsewhere in this article it is recounted that Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik
would reschedule shiur on Thanksgiving day, so that shiur
started earlier, and ended earlier, allowing the celebration of Thanksgiving.
It is important to note the Torah study was not canceled, or even curtailed.
Rather, the day was rearranged to allow for a full compliment of Torah, hand
in hand with the requisite "civil celebrations." That too is an important
lesson in how we should mark Thanksgiving.

Torah learning must be an integral part of what we do, and how we function.
Sometimes, because of the needs of the times or our duties as citizens, we
undertake tasks that appear to conflict with our need to study and learn
Torah. But yet we must continue to learn and study. Thus, Rabbi Soloveitchik
did not cancel shiur on Thanksgiving. We, too, should not forget that leson.
Torah study must go on.

Applying the principles explained above to determine whether it permitted
to celebrate Halloween requires that one first explore the origins of Halloween
as a holiday. As developed below, this is a classical case where the application
of the same rules to different sets of facts leads to a different rule of
halacha.

A recent newspaper article recounted:

According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Halloween
originated with the pagan Celtic festival of Samhain, a day on which the
devil was invoked for the various divinations. 'The souls of the dead were
supposed to revisit their homes on this day', Britannica says, 'and the autumnal
festival acquired sinister significance, with ghosts, witches, hobgoblins
.. and demons of all kinds said to be roaming about.' In the early Middle
Ages, the Roman Catholic Church instituted All Hallow's Eve on October 31
and All Saints Day on November 1 to counteract the occult festival. It did
not work. All Hollow's Eve was simply co-opted into the pagan celebration
of Samhain. (66)

As was noted by Professor John Hennig, in his classical article on this topic,
there is a clear historical relationship between the Celtic concepts of
resurrection, Roman Catholic responses to it, and the modern American holiday
of Halloween. (67)

Thus, Halloween, unlike Thanksgiving, plainly has in its origins religious
beliefs that are foreign to Judaism, and whose beliefs are prohibited to
us as Jews.

On the other hand, notwithstanding the origins of Halloween, one must recognize
that the vast majority of the people in America who currently celebrate Halloween
do not do so out of any sense of religious observance or feeling. Indeed,
one is hard pressed to find a religion in the United States that recognize
Halloween as a religious holiday. One recent writer, responding to Christian
assertions that Halloween celebrations are a form of pagan worship, wrote:

One of my fondest memories of kindergarten was
the first Halloween celebrated at school. I marched proudly from room to
room in our elementary school in my Wilma Flintstone [a character
in a cartoon --MB] costume as a participant in the Halloween parade.
The anticipation of the event was overwhelming, exciting and the fun was
anything but sinister .... To say that participating in Halloween leads to
devil worship is like saying taking Tylenol leads to crack addition. Believe
me, when I was marching in my Wilma Flintstone costume, the last thing on
my mind was drawing pentagrams or performing satanic rituals. The only thought
I had was that next year I'd be Pebbles! [Wilma's child -- MB]... It is only
a few fringe group fundamentalist who seriously believe Halloween is a holiday
for worshiping the devil. (68)

This statement appears to be a truthful recounting of the modern American
celebration of Halloween. The vast majority of people who celebrate Halloween
have absolutely no religious motives at all -- it is an excuse to collect
candy or engage in mischievous behavior.

However, it is worth noting that there are still some people who celebrate
Halloween religiously, and there are occasional court cases about employees
who seek to take religious leave on Halloween day as a religious holiday.
(69)

Thus, the question about Halloween is whether Jewish law allows one to celebrate
an event that has pagan origins, where the pagan origins are still known
and celebrated by a very few, but not by the vast majority of people who
engage in this activity.

Halloween and Halacha

In order to answer this question, a certain background into the nature of
the prohibition to imitate Gentile customs must be understood. As explained
above (70) Tosafot understands that two
distinctly different types of customs are forbidden by the prohibition of
imitating Gentile customs found in Leviticus 18:3. The first is idolatrous
customs and the second is foolish customs found in the Gentile community,
even if their origins are not idolatrous.
(71) Rabbenu Nissim (Ran) and Maharik disagree
and rule that only customs that have a basis in idolatrous practices are
prohibited. Apparently foolish -- but secular -- customs are permissible
so long as they have a reasonable explanation (and are not immodest).
(72) Normative halacha follows the ruling
of the Ran and Maharik. As noted by Rama:

Those practices done as a [Gentile] custom or law
with no reason one suspects that it in an idolatrous practice or that there
is a taint of idolatrous origins; however, those customs which are practiced
for a reason, such as the physician who wears a special garment to identify
him as a doctor, can be done; the same is true for any custom done out of
honor or any other reason is permissible.
(73)

Rabbi Isserless is thus clearly prohibiting observing customs that have pagan
origins, or even which might have pagan origins. His opinion, the most lenient
found in normative halacha, is the one we follow.
(74)

Based on this, in order to justify candy collection on halloween, one would
have to accepts the truthfulness of any of the following assertions:

1] Halloween celebrations have a secular origin.

2] The conduct of the individuals "celebrating Halloween"
can be rationally explained independent of Halloween.

3] The pagan origins of Halloween or the Catholic
response to it are so deeply hidden that they have disappeared, and the
celebrations con be attributed to some secular source or reason.

4] The activities memorialized by Halloween are actually
consistent with the Jewish tradition.

I believe that none of these statements are true.

Conclusions

Applying these halachic rules to Halloween leads to the conclusion that
participation in Halloween celebrations -- which is what collecting candy
is when one is wearing a costume -- is prohibited. Halloween, since it has
its origins in a pagan practice, and lacks any overt rationale reason for
its celebration other than its pagan origins or the Catholic response to
it, is governed by the statement of Rabbi Isserless that such conduct is
prohibited as its origins taint it. (76)
One should not send one's children out to trick or treat on Halloween, or
otherwise celebrate the holiday.

The question of whether one can give out candy to people who come to the
door is a different one, as there are significant reasons based on darchai
shalom (the ways of peace), eva (the creation of unneeded hatred
towards the Jewish people) and other secondary rationales that allow one
to distribute candy to people who will be insulted or angry if no candy is
given. This is even more so true when the community -- Jewish and Gentile
-- are unaware of the halachic problems associated with the conduct, and
the common practice even within many Jewish communities is to "celebrate"
the holiday. Thus, one may give candy to children who come to one's house
to "trick or treat" if one feels that this is necessary.

FOOTNOTES

1. Two different types of "celebration" are discussed.
The first, and most significant, is the eating of a festive holiday meal
with turkey and other forms of activity directly celebrating the day (such
as attending a parade). The second is a lesser form of celebration: the
intentional scheduling of other types of celebratory events -- such as weddings
-- on Thanksgiving to take advantage of the fact that many do not work. Similar
to that is the practice of changing the time of daily prayer service to
acknowledge this day as one in which people do not normally work.

2. The Appendix will discuss whether turkey is a kosher
bird fit for consumption throughout the year.

3. The celebration of Canadian Thanksgiving is a different
issue from that of its American cousin. Canada celebrated its first Thanksgiving
in 1572, but the date of its modern Thanksgiving observance was not fixed
until 1957, when the second Monday in October (the same day as American Columbus
day) was agreed on. There still is no common agreement on the appropriate
food to eat, and large numbers of individuals simply do not celebrate the
holiday, even in Canada. Indeed, there are some provinces that do not treat
it as a holiday. For more on this, see Julianne Margvelashvili, "Thanksgiving,
the Canadian Way," Philadelphia Inquirer, November 9, 1994 at section
B1. The halachic issues involved are thus different.

4. Such as the Boston Thanksgiving celebration of February
22, 1630. As will be discussed in text accompanying note 63, the question
of whether it would have been permissible for a Jew to join with the colonists
in these spontaneous celebrations is an issue different from whether one
may celebrate Thanksgiving now.

5. This history of Thanksgiving is taken from R. &
A, Linton, We Gather Together: The Story of Thanksgiving at pages
72-85 (1949).

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers
and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations, and beseech Him
to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether
in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties
properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to
all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional
laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide
all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown kindness to us),
and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the
knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science
among them and us; and, generally, to grant unto all mankind such a degree
of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.

Fasting and prayer are religious exercises; the enjoining them an act of
discipline. Every religious society has a right to determine for itself the
times for these exercises, and the objects proper for them, according to
their own particular tenets; and this right can never be safer than in their
own hands, where the Constitution has deposited it.

A. Lipscomb ed., Writings of Thomas Jefferson 11:429 (1904).

9. New York State attempted to revive the holiday of
Thanksgiving in 1795. However, this attempt failed because of a basic
disagreement between various commercial interests over when the holiday should
be celebrated.

Southern states, for many years before 1846, issued Thanksgiving day
proclamations, many of which were overtly Christian, and which raised
considerable protests from the Jewish community. For example:

When James H. Hammond, governor of South Carolina, announced a day of
"Thanksgiving, Humiliation, and Prayer" in 1844, he ... exhorted "our citizens
of all denominations to assemble at their respective places of worship, to
offer up their devotions to God their Creator, and his Son Jesus Christ,
the Redeemer of the world." The Jews of Charleston protested, charging Hammond
with "such obvious discrimination and preference in the tenor of your
proclamation, as amounted to an utter exclusion of a portion of the people
of South Carolina." Hammond responded that "I have always thought it a settled
matter that I lived in a Christian land! And that I was the temporary chief
magistrate of a Christian people. That in such a country and among such a
people I should be, publicly, called to an account, reprimanded and required
to make amends for acknowledging Jesus Christ as the Redeemer of the world,
I would not have believed possible, if it had not come to pass".

M. Borden, Jews, Turks, and Infidels 142 n.2 (1984). Such overtly
Christian proclamations have not been signed since 1860.

11. There was some controversy concerning the proper
date for Thanksgiving, as in 1934 President Roosevelt switched the day of
Thanksgiving from the last Thursday in November to the second-to-last Thursday
in November when November has five weeks. This was done to change the nation's
shopping pattern and increase spending. While some objected to this mercantile
approach to the holiday, Roosevelt -- and mercantilism -- triumphed and
Thanksgiving has been celebrated in the second to last week of November since
that year.

15. This article uses the term "turkey" to refer to
the species of bird ornithologists classify as Meleagris gallopavo.
There is another type of turkey called ocellated turkey (Agriocharis
ocellata) common in southwestern America and Mexico whose status as
a kosher bird cannot be verified by this writer. The Austrian turkey, the
brush turkey, the water turkey and the turkey vulture are not considered
kosher birds and are not species of turkey at all. The modern English name
"turkey" comes from the mistaken British belief that this bird was somehow
related to the "guinea fowl" of Islamic ("turkish") lands. For more on turkeys,
see "Turkey," Encyclopedia Britannica 12:58-59 (15th ed., 1991).)

Throughout this article it is assumed that the eating of turkey is generally
permitted throughout the year; indeed, the current practice of nearly all
Jews is to treat turkey as a kosher bird. A close examination of the halachic
literature reveals that this was by no means accepted by all authorities
at all times. Obviously, if one were to conclude that turkey is not a kosher
bird, that would have a significant impact on one's ability to eat it on
Thanksgiving. (The problem of the permissibility of eating turkey is compounded
by the fact that the Yiddish and German term for "guinea fowl"
(perlahener) is sometimes mistranslated as "turkey." Thus, while
the translator of the German words in the Bar-Ilan CD-Rom Responsa collection
notes that Rabbi David Tzvi Hoffmann in Melamed LeHoil 2:15 is discussing
the permissibility of eating turkey when he is discussing the
perlahener, in fact he is discussing the eating of guinea fowl,
as is made clear by his reference to Chatam Sofer OC 127 (as well as
consultations with various Yiddish and German dictionaries). Most authorities
agree with Rabbi Hoffmann that guinea fowl is not a kosher bird, although
that too is disputed.)

Turkey was first discovered in America in the early sixteenth century and
was brought to Europe as a product of trade with the new land. It was at
first thought to be the larger American version of the European chicken.
(This explains its modern Hebrew name, (tarnagolet hodu) and its
modern Yiddish name (hendika hen), both of which mean "Indian" chicken
as "India" was what Columbus thought he had discovered, and for many years
products of the new world were called "Indian products" e.g. "Indian
corn.") At the time that turkey was first introduced into Jewish communities
in Europe, a number of authorities thought that it was not appropriate to
eat this bird, as Rabbi Moshe Isserless (Rama) rules that one does
not eat birds that lack a tradition of being kosher, even if they have the
general indicia of being a kosher bird; Yoreh Deah 82:3. This was even more
true for turkey, as it was not clear if they, in fact, had the general indicia
of being kosher.(For a discussion of what these factors are, see Yoreh Deah
82:1-3.) It is worth noting that the Encyclopedia Britannica (at 12:58) states
that wild turkeys are sometimes carnivorous, although domestic turkeys no
longer are. Thus, no less an authority than Rabbi Shlomo Kluger rules that
turkey may not be eaten and lacks the tradition of being a kosher bird; see
Beit Shlomo Yoreh Deah 1:144 and the sources cited in Darchai
Teshuva YD 82:34. However, the vast majority of halachic authorities,
after examining turkeys and their habitats, concluded that turkeys do in
fact have the indicia of being a kosher bird and are included in the tradition
of being a kosher animal; see, for example Divrai Chaim YD 2:45; Iggerot
Habosem 16; Maharam Shick YD 98-100; and the lengthy discussion in Darchai
Teshuva 82:31,34-35. Turkey's mesorah as kosher was subsumed under
the mesorah of chickens, geese or ducks.

The normative practice in America -- adhered to by all of the major kosher
certification organizations and the vast overwhelming majority of observant
Jews -- is to consider turkey to be a kosher bird fit for consumption throughout
the year according to Jewish law.

16. For elaboration on this issue, see Rabbi Tzvi Teichman,
"The Jew in a Gentile Society: Chukat Ha'Akum" 3 Journal of Halacha and
Contemporary Society 64-85 (1981).

17. Tosafot Avodah Zara 11a ve'ei. Tosafot,
and all of the other authorities discussed in this section are resolving
a tension between the talmud here and in Sanhedren 52b.

20. Gra YD 178:7. For a review of the authorities who
disagree with the Gra, see Seride Esh 3:93.

21. For a discussion of why halacha historically discusses
the idolatrous practices of "Indian" faiths, see the star footnote in the
Mishnah Berurah 330:8, the prefatory remarks of Rabbi Chaim Cohen in Divrai
Geonim and the extremely illuminating remarks of Rabbi Bleich on
"self-censorship" and avoidance of "imposed censorship" through the mechanism
common in Eastern European works of discussing the practices of the "observant
Jews" and "idolatrous Gentiles" of "India" found in Rabbi J. David Bleich,
"Extraditing Jews," Techumin 8:297, 301-302 (5747).

22. Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah 147:6-9. The issue of
how much assistance is permissible in cases where the violation will occur
whether or not the Jew assists is beyond the scope of this article. For more
on that, see my "Assisting in a Violation of Noachide Law" forthcoming in
the Jewish Law Association Conference Volume: The Jerusalem
Conference.

25. The status of New Year's Day has changed in the
last three hundred years. In contemporary America there is little religious
content or expression to New Year's Day, and while there might be many problems
associated with the way some celebrate it, few would classify it as a religious
holiday. However, Terumat Hadeshen 195, writing nearly five hundred years
ago classifies New Years as a religious holiday and this is quoted by Rama
YD 148:12. Terumat Hadeshen discusses whether one may give a New Year's Day
gift and refers to January First as "the eighth day of Christmas." He clearly
understands the holiday as religious in nature and covered by the prohibition
of assisting a Gentile in his worship. (The text of the common edition of
the Shulchan Aruch here has undoubtedly been subject to considerable censorship;
for an accurate rendition of the Rama, see the Rama's Darchai Moshe
in the new edition of the Tur published by Machon Yerushalyim.)

29. Thus, for example, this author suspects that Rabbi
Feinstein would feel it not problematic to note Thanksgiving -- like Labor
Day, Independence Day, and Memorial Day are noted -- on synagogue calendars
as a secular "holiday." Indeed, Thanksgiving Day (along with Columbus Day,
Veterans Day, Election Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day
and Labor Day) are all noted in the Ezras Torah calendar published
under Rabbis Feinstein's (and Henkin's) auspices. (New Years Day and Christmas
Day are not.) So too, this author suspects that Rabbi Feinstein would permit
teaching about Thanksgiving to school children as part of their general studies
curriculum, just as he would permit Columbus to be discussed.

32. Iggerot Moshe Yoreh Deah 4:12. This teshuva
was written in response to a questioner who noted that the analysis found
in Iggerot Moshe OC 5:20(6), Iggerot Moshe YD 4:11(4), and Iggerot Moshe
EH 2:13 seem to be at tension one with the other. Indeed, to resolve the
matter in any way other than the one Rabbi Feinstein himself does requires
a re-understanding of a number of teshuvot written by Rabbi Feinstein dealing
with secular customs that have no religious origins -- activity that Rabbi
Feinstein has repeatedly ruled permissible throughout his life.

35. Indeed, it is clear from Rabbi Greenblatt's letter
that he feels that Rabbi Feinstein agrees with his ruling, in that he references
to the fact that he was the questioner to both Rabbi Feinstein and Rabbi
Klein and that only one of them does not agree with him. As will be made
clear from Rabbi Klein's responsa, he certainly does not agree that celebration
is permitted.

37. Rabbi Howard Jachter of Brooklyn notes that he
explicitly spoke to Rabbi Soloveitchik about this in July 1985 and that Rabbi
Soloveitchik affirmed this ruling and did not see any problem with celebrating
Thanksgiving. Dr. Avi Feldblum of Highland Park, NJ also confirmed to this
author that he heard such a ruling from Rabbi Soloveitchik, as did Dr. Marc
Shapiro of Boston.

While I do not know whether Rabbi Soloveitchik had turkey for dinner that
night or whether he called it a Thanksgiving dinner, it was well known that
on the day that is marked on the calendar as Thanksgiving, Rav Soloveitchik
started shiur much earlier than usual, in order to end earlier than usual
and catch the plane back to Boston, to have a festive meal etc. However,
it is of interest to note that while Thanksgiving appeared to be of sufficient
importance to change the fixed time for shiur, it was not sufficient to end
shiur if the Rav had not completed what he wanted to understand. On Thanksgiving
1976, there was the famous Thanksgiving shiur where the Rav spent about five
hours (most of it in silent thought) working through one tosafot. After the
second or third time the shamash passed him a note about the flight
[back to Boston], the Rav turned to him and said "no one can leave here until
we have understood what it is that Tosafot is saying!"

Letter of Dr. Avi Feldblum, published electronically in mail.jewish, volume
5, issue 20 available in archives at mail-jewish@shamash.nysernet.org.

39. Part of the underlying dispute might concern whether
Jewish law accepts the opinion of the Gra that customs that have secular
origins are prohibited. As noted above, Gra YD 178:7 rules that such customs
are prohibited. Rabbi Henkin, in his teshuvot, Benai Banim 2:30 demonstrates
that this is not the normative halachic approach, which is to maintain that
absent idolatrous origins, such customs are not suspect. The validity of
many secular practices most likely hinges on the resolution of this dispute.

A secondary dispute is also present as to whether the act of commemoration
for the survival of the nation is "nonsense" or not. Rabbi David Cohen writes
that "The aspect of a law of craziness and nonsense (

40. Letter of Rabbi Henkin, dated 23 Tevet 5755. Rabbi
Henkin notes that it is not prohibited to delay the time of morning services
to reflect the fact that many are off from work on Thanksgiving. However,
on a legal holiday that is also a Gentile religious holiday -- such as December
25 -- he advises that it is better to ignore the secular holiday for scheduling
purposes. Rabbi David Cohen writes that it is best not to change the time
of prayer, even on Sunday, and certainly to do so on a Gentile holiday is
frowned on; Letter of Rabbi David Cohen, dated 9 Nissan 5755.

43. Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner, Pachad Yitzchak: Iggerot
umechtavim shel Harav Hutner (5751), 109. The word "appears" is appropriate
because it is from the title of the letter (which was not written by Rabbi
Hutner, but by the editor) that it is clear that Rabbi Hutner is dealing
with Thanksgiving. Since this volume of Rabbi Hutner's was published
posthumously, it is possible that the letter was in fact in reference to
some other event. Indeed, Rabbi David Cohen (of Gvul Yavetz) writes:

Once I heard from my teacher Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner "

44. A similar type of argument can be found, relating
to a different holiday, in Kovetz Iggrot Me'at HaChazon Ish, 97.

47. Mishna Halacha 10:116. There seem to be two completely
different issues raised by Rabbi Klein. The first is the problem posed by
the celebration by Jews of idolatrous holidays. The second is the problems
of imitating Gentile customs. It is important to realize that these two issues
are quite separate and distinct. The first is discussed on Shulchan Aruch
Yoreh Deah 148 and the second in Yoreh Deah 178. Conceptually, the two issues
are unrelated.

48. Rabbi Klein, writing to Rabbi Ephraim Greenblatt
who posed the question, states that he would withdraw his response if the
approach of Rabbi Feinstein on this issue were known. It is unclear how the
recent publication in Am Hatorah of the opinion of Rabbi Feinstein,
discussed above, would affect the ruling of Rabbi Klein.

Rabbi Feivel Cohen also writes that halacha prohibits the celebration of
Thanksgiving; undated letter to this writer received Nissan 5755. He indicates
that, in his opinion, based on the language of Rambam, Malachim 10:9, there
is a significant problem when a Gentile celebrates this holiday, as that
Gentile has the status of one who observes a day of rest and it is as if
he observed his own festival, both of which are prohibited according to Rambam
for a Gentile. Such a holiday, Rabbi Cohen writes, is created by Thanksgiving,
which is an attempt by a Gentile to create a special day of festivities,
and thus prohibited. Indeed, in Rabbi Cohen's opinion, even if there is no
difference between Thanksgiving and Independence Day, both are prohibited
festivals, as Gentiles may not add festive days to the calendar.

In this author's opinion, the argument that Thanksgiving celebrations are
prohibited to Gentiles by Malachim 10:9 is not persuasive. Even if Thanksgiving
is a holiday in the American law sense, it is not at all clear that the manner
of celebration one sees in America fits into the halachic category of festival
(mo'ed) or of resting (shabbat), rather than a mere
commemoration. Thus, for example, the prohibition of a Gentile observing
Shabbat is obviated even by slight deviations from the rules of keeping Shabbat
by the Gentile; for more on this, see Rabbi J. David Bleich "Observance of
Shabbat by Prospective Proselytes" Tradition 25(3) 46-62 (1991).
One could easily claim that the same is true for a Gentile having a Thanksgiving
observance, which bears no resemblance to the way the Jewish tradition celebrated
festivals.

50. The question of observing or attending a Thanksgiving
day parade can only be answered after one decides what is the status of the
day itself. Applying the three positions developed above to parades, one
observes that:

1) If one rules that Thanksgiving is a Gentile holiday,
it would be prohibited to participate or benefit in any way from the parade
honoring the day.

2) If one maintains that Thanksgiving is not a Gentile
holiday, but prohibited because of the rule against Gentile customs, observing
the parade would not be prohibited, as observing parades is not irrational;
even then, however, care must be exercised, lest people be taught to observe
such customs generally. (Letter of Rabbi Cohen, dated 9 Nissan 5755.)

3) If one concludes that Thanksgiving is a secular
holiday, with a rational basis in national rescue, and thus may be celebrated,
there would seem to be no problem in attending a parade, as a Thanksgiving
day parade is no different from an Independence Day parade.

51. To this writer, Rabbi Hutner's proof could be disputed,
as it proves too much: it would also "prove" that Independence Day, Labor
Day, V-E day, Washington's Birthday, and the many other clearly secular holidays
observed by Americans throughout the year -- based on the Christian/secular
calendar -- are really "Gentile" holidays. Such seems counter-intuitive.
In addition, it would seem that Thanksgiving is an extremely poor example
of the phenomena that Rabbi Hutner is criticizing, as Thanksgiving does not
have a fixed date on the secular calendar -- rather it is the fourth Thursday
of the month of November, whatever date that happens to be. Indeed, Congress
could move the date to July if it so voted.

52. This is clear stated by Rabbi Hutner above and can
also be found in Rabbi Moshe Shternbuch, Teshuvot veHanhagot 2:721.

56. For a review essay on the various issues see, Rabbi
Moshe Tzvi Nariah, "Adding Days of Joy to the Jewish Calendar" 3 Hatorah
VehaMedinah 77-85 (2nd ed. Tzomet, 5752).

57. It is important to realize that such was not always
the case in the United States. In the early 1950's, in response to the perceived
threat of "godless communism", "prayer books" containing rituals and
pseudo-religious quot;reflections" on the various American "holidays" were
published in order to encourage the ritualization of the celebration. For
an example of this, see Mordecai Kaplan, Paul Williams and Eugene Kohn, The
Faith of America: Prayers Reading, and Songs for the Celebration of American
Holidays (New York, 1951).

58. Nor for that matter is the Independence Day cookout
or the Veteran's Day parade obligatory.

59. Besides Thanksgiving, they are: Martin Luthur King
Day (celebrating the birthday of the civil rights leader), President's Day
(celebrating the birthdays of Lincoln and Washington), Memorial Day
(commemorating those who have died fighting for this country), Independence
Day (celebrating the establishment of the Union), Labor Day (celebrating
worker's rights), Columbus Day (marking the day Columbus discovered America),
and Veterans Day (celebrating the end of the two World Wars).

60. In this significant way, these American holidays
are markedly different from their Israeli counterparts, which more clearly
appear to be additions to the Jewish calendar. This article is not the place
for a full and complete discussion of the significance of the establishment
of the State of Israel and the proper halachic responses to it. Rather the
purpose of this section is to note that this issue is not relevant when
discussing halachic issues involved in celebrating modern American secular
holidays.

61. Consistent with this is Rabbi Yehuda Herzl Henkin's
proposal (found in the previous section) that one skip the Thanksgiving meal
every couple of years to indicate that this is not a religious ritual. He,
too, feels that these ritualization concerns are what Rabbi Feinstein is
referring to.

62. In this author's opinion, it is quite possible that
the changes in American society and sociology since the 1950's account for
the differences between Rabbi Feinstein's first responsum in 1953 and his
second in 1980. When Rabbi Feinstein first addressed this topic in 1953,
Thanksgiving was not a religious holiday, but there were those who wanted
to make it one (see note 57 for a discussion of this). Thus, Rabbi Feinstein
thought pious people should be strict on this matter. By 1981 that movement
had completely disappeared from the American scene, thus eliminating even
the possibility that one might think this a religious holiday, and thus Rabbi
Feinstein does not indicate in his later teshuva that pious people should
be strict on this matter.

63. It is not clear that Rabbi Hutner would agree to
that, although a close reading of the letter does imply that.

64. For a discussion of this, see California School
Employees Association v. Governing Board of the Marin Community College
District, 33 Cal.Rptr.2d 109 (1994).